Putting the Swachh in Swachh Bharat

The 2015 edition of ‘The Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Performance Index’ by the Water Institute at University of North Carolina, ranked India a poor 34th in sanitation access. The World Health Organization and figures from India’s own census show that almost 50 percent of the country (approximately 620 million people) defecates in the open. Acknowledging the issue back in 2014, the Prime Minister in his Independence Day speech promised to change the situation. He announced the construction of over 80 lakh toilets under his ambitious Swachh Bharat mission and set a target of 2019 for eliminating open defecation and instilling a behavioral change towards cleanliness.

While the targets are impressive and the traction on-ground laudable, there is still a long way to go to achieve the desired outcomes. Building toilets requires the setting up of a robust sewage infrastructure that will handle waste efficiently and stop the spread of infectious diseases, illness and mortality amongst children. As per UNICEF & WHO estimates, about 10 million children under the age of 5 die due to improper sanitation, of these 2.4 million belong to India.

Capital expenditure on the construction of 80 lakh toilets is another key challenge that we need to look at. Keeping in mind the budget allocated for construction of each toilet, the total cost of the exercise would be Rs 9,600 crores! Additionally, climate changes have led to an increase in droughts and acute water shortage. This calls for a more sustainable solution to address these challenges. Bio-toilets could be the panacea to this predicament.

Bio-toilets have come a long way since they were first launched. In its current avatar, bio-toilets are far superior to regular toilets. The composition of a bio-toilet includes a toilet and bio-digester tank that occupies 1/3rd the space of a normal toilet (including septic tank) and come at a fraction of the total cost of ownership of a regular toilet. Designed with the aim of optimizing efficiency, the 100 percent sludge free disposal of human waste eliminates the need for manual scavenging by decomposing solid waste to bio-gas and water. This residual water from a bio-toilet needs no further treatment and can be used for irrigation, while the bio-gas can be used for cooking. It involves zero maintenance as the anaerobic bacteria used in the bio-digester tank do not require repeat dosing and is capable of procreating in it. These bacteria can function effectively in temperatures ranging from sub-zero to 55 degrees centigrade, thus making them ideal for any terrain. It also minimizes any potential environmental problems and reduces billions of liters of water wastage through the no-flush or extremely low-flush system. In fact, water consumption in a bio-toilet is around 50 percent lesser than conventional toilets. Most importantly, a bio-toilet also plays a critical role in preventable healthcare as it completely eliminates disease causing pathogens.

In its Swachhata Status Report 2016, the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation (MOSPI) found that 5.8 million toilets were constructed during the year 2014-15. While this was above the planned target of 5 million toilets, and shows the government’s intent to fast track the scheme, there needs to be a concerted effort made towards fecal sludge management. In our zeal to achieve the target of a Swachh Bharat, we need to ensure that untreated sewage does not find its way into water bodies as well as septic tanks that pollute groundwater and surface water. This will defeat the entire purpose of the Swachh Bharat program.

I believe a stand-alone bio-toilet is the way forward to achieve a safe, healthy and open defecation free India. Be it in space crunched cities like Mumbai or Delhi, or a remote rural area that lacks proper funds to set up a toilet and management of the same that lacks compliance, bio-toilets could be a futuristic, sustainable solution to the current sanitation crisis and put the Swachh in Swachh Bharat.

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